Sunday, December 03, 2006

BCS Results: Ohio State vs. Florida

Florida in. Michigan out. There's a few minutes left to analyze it before it's not worth it anymore and we need to move on to looking ahead to the actual games. Thoughts on the choice? The other BCS games? How it will play out?

Really Florida is in so there is no reason to analyze it after a few minutes.... are you freaking kidding me if Michigan would of been chosen you would of been posting about how much of an outrage it was until Jan. 10... you are unfreaking real

Well, now the Big Ten gets to prove its dominance I guess. How the hell you can penalize Michigan for not playing the last two weeks is beyond me but so be it. The Big Ten will finish with 3 top 5 teams.

put me in the camp that thinks that this is the exact reason why the bowl system SHOULDNT be replaced...no other sport can generate this much controversy and garner the ability to have debates that last forever. Playoffs are symbolic of the american need for instant gratification...long live the bowl games!

(not to mention that the bowl system has and does work very well for a great number of schools around the country, in terms of exposure)

The fact that Notre Dame gets in over Wisconsin and Auburn is bullshit because they aren't in a conference and therefore can't be affected by the no 3 teams from one conference rule. That rule, with the expansion to 10 BCS teams, needs to be looked at and changed if no playoff will be implemented.

As a Michigan fan, I am disappointed, but I don't really think it is any type of a rediculous choice. Flordia had their reasons to make the NC game, and Michigan had theirs. The pollsters thought Flordia had a better reason to go.

I just wish that people voted for who they thought the better team was, not for SOS or "They had their shot" reasons. Otherwise the system failed... again.

Now for a shot to prove you aren't a complete homer DS... Do you think Flordia has a shot at winning this game?

Also, am I the only one that really really hates Jim Tressle. "We have to do what is right for the Student Athletes, and the Athletic Department. The system in place has worked so far"

Then their QB (refuse to say his name :>) was just on the Blitz "The system has worked so far." NOT IT HASN'T Thats why so many people want a playoff... because the BCS doesn't work.

Personally, it's going to be a joy listening to the Michigan fans whine, and now they can't do anything about it except pity themselves in the Rose Bowl! Ahhh...it has been said before...anyone that has lost really has no reason to complain, they blew their chance, hell, I'm a WVU fan and I know that's true. I'll still enjoy the bowls though.

I don't think there is anyone outside of Florida thinks the Gators are going to be a better game for OSU than Michigan would have been. But whatever. It is a flawed system and someone was going to lose. In this case it was Michigan. All we can do now is sit back and watch Florida lose by 3 touchdowns then have everyone say "Oops... the BCS screwed up again."

The BCS actually got it right...accept for the fact that Overrated Dame is in the BCS, Auburn wins 35-7. The issue that isnt being raised is the fact that the Big 11 and the Pac 10 dont have a 'Championship Game' That was the difference for the Gators.

And on a side note, Kirk 'Big Ten Homer' Herbstreet is a whinny little bitch.

What the hell is up with this "controversy is good for the sport" talk? Was the steroid controversy good for baseball? The reason it's controversial is because the system sucks, and people want to change it.

One more thing: we all need to stop saying that the system failed. The system worked, it succeeded, it did exactly what it was designed to do. The problem is that no one actually wants what it's meant to do.

So instead of saying the system failed, say, "Well, it worked again, it made another tough decision in order to accomidate the ridiculous 1 v. 2 nightmare we're stuck in.

The sooner we admit that the reason to blow up the BCS is that it works, the sooner we get rid of the people who defend it by saying "It did what it was designed to do." Yes it did. And that's the problem. With any luck, Florida will be considered the last of the pre-legitimacy national champs.

I am a UF alum and lifelong Gator fan. I don't care what Dan thinks, I care what I think.

That basketball game sucked, without Brewer and Noah playing limited minutes because of a respitory infection really hurt in the end. That being said this team needs to suck it up and play like they are capable of playing. Tonight they walked out there with the arrogance of being a National Champion. While they did make a comeback from 15 down in the last 5 mins it wasn't enough. No excuses, this team needs to forget last season and play their game. Not the crap I saw tonight.

"I know Florida's Urban Meyer doesn't want to see a rematch, but he's not exactly an impartial observer, is he? And if Meyer were in Carr's Nikes, I guarantee you his objections to a second Ohio State-Michigan game would have disappeared."

Dec. 22 New Orleans Bowl: Rice vs TroyI'd be a hypocrite if after all my grandstanding about the bowls and school size if I didn't support Rice.

Dec. 23 PapaJohns.com: USF vs East CarolinaTough one, because as a general rule I support all of the non-Triangle Carolina schools. But the Bulls are tough to pick against based on how I've seen them play. So while my heart is with the Pirates, I gotta go with South Florida.

Dec. 28 Texas: Rutgers vs Kansas StateYou may have noticed over the course of the season that I support Rutgers

Dec. 29 Music City: Kentucky vs ClemsonStill bitter that Clemson came back against Wake Forest.

Dec. 29 Sun: Oregon State vs MissouriOregon State is the only team to beat Hawaii in Hawaii this season. And you might have heard they beat USC.

Dec. 29 Liberty: South Carolina vs HoustonOh I'm Proud to Be an American, where at least I know I'm freeAnd I won't forget the men who died, who gave that right to meAnd I'll gladly stand up! next to you and defend her still today'Cause there ain't no doubt I love this land ... God Bless the USA

Dec. 29 Insight: Texas Tech vs MinnesotaDon't bet on this game. I can see the Gophers either winning by 20 or losing by 30, depending on which team shows up. Since the expected result is losing by 10, I choose the Red Raiders.

Dec. 29 Champs Sports: Purdue vs MarylandMaryland is a mediocre team that benefited from some lucky breaks and easy scheduling. Purdue is slightly less mediocre.

Dec. 30 Meineke: Navy vs Boston CollegeBC Sucks! BC Sucks! BC Sucks!

Dec. 30 Alamo: Texas vs IowaHow the heck Iowa qualified for a bowl this year is beyond me.

Dec. 30 Chick-fil-A: Virginia Tech vs GeorgiaGo with consistency. Am I the only one upset that this game isn't being played on a Sunday?

Dec. 31 MPC Computers: Miami vs NevadaSee Independence Bowl

Jan. 6 International: Cincinnati vs Western MichiganJan. 7 GMAC: Southern Miss vs OhioWhy are these games after New Year's? Do they honestly think they're more likely to get people to care?

Jan. 1 Outback: Penn State vs TennesseePoSU is a team that knows exactly where it belong this season; they beat teams worse than them and lose to teams better than them. Tennessee is worse than them.And I think it's ridiculous Outback doesn't open for lunch. Who's with me?!?

Jan. 1 Capital One: Wisconsin vs ArkansasThis game will have 400+ yards rushing. Wisconsin is fortunate to get the ball last.

Jan. 1 Gator: West Virginia vs Georgia TechNothing like going back to the site of a recent heart-wrenching defeat to play another big game, huh?

Jan. 1 Fiesta: Oklahoma vs Boise StateSee my diatribe in the other thread about coaching making up the talent gap. While BSU's coach seems for all intents and purposes to be an excellent coach, I don't think he's better than Bob Stoops.However, if Adrian Peterson plays, all bets are off because then the Sooners would no longer have the Ewing Effect going for them.

Jan. 2 Orange: Wake Forest vs LouisvilleWake Forest is like those Martial Artists that use your strength against you. I have the feeling Louisville is going to outgain Wake Forest by a 2-1 margin and still lose by 10. Go Demon Deacons!

Jan. 3 Sugar: LSU vs Notre DameThe genius loses in another big game.

Jan. 8 National Championship: Ohio State vs FloridaOSU is not only a complete team, it's a well-coached team. That's why comparisons between it and Coker's UM team that lost to tOSU are not valid.

When UF gives OSU a hell of a game, it'll be the best argument for a playoff yet. It'll show that not even 13 games of regular season can do the impossible job of whittling 119 teams down to the obviously worthy 2. I guess I'm just biased, but I'm 100% positive the Gators can play with any team in the country. But I guess having UF labeled the huge underdog will work well for motivation.

no other sport can generate this much controversy and garner the ability to have debates that last forever.

Somebody please explain this "logic" to me. You know a controversial way to determine the best team in the country? Have all the AP guys vote on the hottest cheerleaders. Then you can have all the controversy & debate in the world.

Who fucking cares about controversy and debates? That somehow makes the BC$ okay? The point is to determine the best team, and the ONLY way to do that is to decide it on the field.

I've said it before and I'll say it in this final post: if Florida loses by more than three points, then Michigan should have made it in. If they lose by less than three points, or, gasp, win, then damn it, Florida deserved to be there.

Unfortunately for Florida, I think the game is already over. You've got a complete team against a team that can't keep up on offense.

And, if Florida loses by more than 14 points, the SEC never gets to utter the phrase "tough conference" AGAIN!

And, if Florida loses by more than 14 points, the SEC never gets to utter the phrase "tough conference" AGAIN!

Let's be fair. Just because #1 in one conference beats #1 in another doesn't mean the entire conference is better. Or do you think the Eastern Conference was better than the Western Conference in the NBA last year?

What it does do it put a lie to the whole "we beat each other up" argument that so many have argued. SEC is playing for the championship, it's time for them to put up or shut up.

Michigan was not penalized for being idle since November 18th. Think about it: if USC beat Notre Dame and Florida won the SEC championship game on that same weekend, they both would have went ahead of Michigan right then and there.

What I'm saying, chrth, is that Florida thinks they are better than they looked this year because they played in a tough conference. Well, if they play OSU the way they looked in, like, four of their last six games--and I am counting their I-AA "game" as a game--the validity of that statement will have been disproven.

(What I'm really saying, though, is that I've heard that phrase about one thousand times too many and just want to see it disappear)

I'm not saying teams that were deemed ineligible due to being the third team from their conference (Auburn, Wisconsin) aren't just as deserving to be eligible, but they wouldn't have been picked over Notre Dame anyway. Face it - aside from the BCS Championship Game, it's all about whose fans travel and bring better television ratings, and in that contest, there isn't a school out there that can touch the Irish. The thing is, all of you ND haters actually help ND get picked over the other schools - you're going to tune in to root against them, thus increasing the viewing audience. So really, if you don't like the Irish being there, you have no one to blame but yourselves.

The only reason was Mich and USC? I don't think so. Purdue won 8 games. GT won 9. Penn State won 8 games and all their losses were to top 10 teams. UCLA won 7 and beat USC. Hell, Navy won 8. These aren't patsies, no matter how you ND-haters-at-all-costs-even-reality want to paint it.

Tell me, of the ELIGIBLE remaining at-large teams, who deserved it over ND?

(Hint: Your only option is West Virginia. UW, Auburn, Arkansas are all ineligible. So is Rutgers by being out of the top 14.)

Of all the eligible teams, I would probably say no one. Which is why the rule should be change. Conferences should be allowed to send more than 2 teams to the BCS. It's a silly rule and it's even more stupid because teams in the conferences don't necessarily play each other.

I agree with you, I think it's a stupid rule. Not least because of this discussion we're currently having. I grow more annoyed every year with the fact that not only do ND-haters bash what bowl ND got in, but they usually have a pretty decent reason to.

Well saying "they're a bowl team" isn't the best of arguments. There are a ton of bowls and it's not overly difficult to get in one. I mean I'm not saying these teams are 1-11 bottom-feeders, but the only RANKED team (at the time) Notre Dame beat was #19 Penn State, in the 2nd game of their season. And Penn State isn't even ranked now. Cmon

If Flordia wins... You give retroactively give Auburn a Co-Championship, you strip away USC's Co-Championship, and henceforth, the SEC Championship game because an automatic bid for the National Championship.

You will all see why SEC fans hate the BCS. Not for the polls, not for the rankings, but because no team has to go through the sucidial schedule that is the SEC.

Oh what a day will it be...

And if they are trounced I will be the 1st one on here proclaiming the greatness of Ohio State, but for now, the polls got it right, and soon the nation will realize you dont need a playoff or BCS, you got the SEC!!!

I guess it depends on where you live with outback. I know the one closest to my place in winter park is open for lunch but there are abunch of businesses right near there. However the one by my buddies house in st pete doesn't oopen til 4. Maybe it depends on whether or not it is a corporate store or a franchise.

As for the bowl games I am really psyched about some of them. I really can't wait to see boise state play oklahoma as well as the traditional rose bowl matchup. The sugar bowl should be a lsu romp. I have no opinion on the orange bowl as I have only seen louisville play one game and havent watched wake all year. My buddies wife is a wake alum and he went to a few games with her and he says they are for real so I might watch to see how good they are but could care less who wins. As for the title game I think it will be close. Most likely coming down to a field goal which is shitty if you are a gator fan. My dad thinks we should hypnotize hetland into thinking that jan 8th is his bday so that he might make his kicks. Of course my dad is convinced they will figur eout how to reinstate marcus thomas for the big game. Another thing I was amazed at was the fact that 8 SEC teams made bowls with only the mississippi teams and vandy not getting in that has to be some kind of record right? Does anyone knwo the most teams one conference has put into bowl in one year.

If any voters actually voted the Gators 5th, that's bad. But it's still not as bad as voting them #1. The only way I could maybe excuse that one Harris Poll voter is if he is a blind devotee and worshipper of the Colley Matrix computer. And even then...

Much of the country is in the midst of the first real cold snap of the season. But you’d never know it from the hot air coming out of Michigan. Lots of upset people blowing a lot of steam over nothing.

The final computer and human rankings were thrown into the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) cauldron and low and behold a live Gator was pulled out. By the way, it was the human voters who saved the day because the BCS computers had the Gators and Wolverines dead even.

I don’t know what the computers were thinking, but anyone who saw Florida come from behind to beat Arkansas 38-28 Saturday night to win the SEC Championship knows what I’m talking about. What a thrilling game? Florida showed its tremendous team speed, talent, and ability to make big plays when it needed to. Talk about going for it? How about that 4th and 10 fake punt -- from its own 15 yard line while trailing in the 3rd quarter? That takes guts! That was the play that earned the Gators a trip to the National Championship game to face the Buckeyes on January 8th in Glendale, Arizona.

Florida is a conference champion with a 12-1 record. Michigan is the runner-up in its conference with an 11-1 record. It’s difficult to understand how anyone could possibly think a second place team (with one less victory) should go to the National Championship game over all the other conference champions.

And we are not talking about a dominating conference in the Big-10. I mean, nothing against the Big 10, it’s a fine conference. But it is clearly no SEC. Just take a gander at the BCS final top 20. 5 teams from the SEC; 3 from the Big-10. How about bowl bids? SEC – 9 bowl bids (most of any conference). Big-10 – 7 bowl bids.

How about non-conference schedule? The SEC was an amazing 41-7 versus non-conference opponents in 2006. This .854 winning percentage blows away any other conference. (Check out www.secsportsfan.com/sec-football.html for more information on SEC football). So, Florida is the Champion of the toughest conference in the nation.

Florida had the toughest schedule in the nation (opponents winning percentage of .643). The gators had 4 quality wins over Tennessee, LSU, Georgia, and Arkansas. Michigan only had 2 quality wins – Notre Dame and Wisconsin.

How boring it would have been to see Ohio State and Michigan for a second time this season (104th time overall). Instead we have two great conference champions from different regions of the country. Florida and Ohio State will be playing against each other for the first time in history. I can hardly wait.

Certainly the BCS system is flawed. College football needs a playoff. No doubt. With the current system there are always more than two teams at the end of the year that can make a strong case they should be in the National Championship game. Someone always feels jilted.

But, if you have to pick only two teams to play for the National Championship – this year those teams have to be Ohio State and Florida. The only thing I don’t understand is why there is even a controversy. It would have been a disgrace to pick Michigan over Florida. So, at least for this year, the BCS got it right. It was easy choice.

Mo Johnson, a long-time SEC sports fan, is the author of this article. He is publisher of www.secsportsfan.com.

The whole idea of a playoff system is a joke. At first I thought it would be a good idea, but thinking more about it, how would it make things better? There still would be controversy who would get in (and all those mid-major teams would more than likely get shut out). And even then, you're stretching out the college season by making those teams play 2, possibly 4 more games. Shouldn't college distinguish itself from the NFL?

I would stop watching every Saturday, because everyone would know that they can wait until the playoffs come around (as long as your team is ranked high enough to begin with & plays well). That's why I normally don't watch the NFL unless it's a big matchup (Indy vs. New England, etc.) And I would hate it if I had to lose that Saturday tradition of College Gameday the mania week in and week out simply because I lost interest in the regular season.

Besides, the bowls make HUGE amounts of profit and the hype surrounding big matchups (maybe not this year, but 2006 USC/Texas, 2004 LSU/OK, 2003 MIA/OSU, 1999 TENN/FSU) make up for the controversy. Without the BCS, we wouldn't have seen the 2 most exciting games in recent CF history (MIA/OSU and USC/TEX). Stop complaining, because you will all be glued to the TV watching these games (almost) every year.

Who did Florida play in the Championship game in basketball? I honestly can't remember. I don't want that to happen to this sport.

I'll have some kind of comment later this morning with the Pre-Bowl CFB Ladder Rankings. After I get to work and actually input this weekend's games. I'll be posting both a Top 25, and the full 119-team rankings.

If someone can honestly tell me that the 4 best basketball teams in the NCAA at the end of last year were Florida, UCLA, LSU, and George Mason -- then I will believe a playoff is the right thing to do.

Until then, I think that the BCS does a better job than any other sport at putting the two best teams (albeit sometimes a controversial pair) against eachother for the national championship.

On a side note -- did anyone notice that the AP article yesterday when the poll came out immediately mentioned the three SEC teams in the top 10, but didn't say anything about 3 Big 10 teams in the top 6?

On a side note -- did anyone notice that the AP article yesterday when the poll came out immediately mentioned the three SEC teams in the top 10, but didn't say anything about 3 Big 10 teams in the top 6?

I'm not surfing throught 90 comments this morning, so if this point has already been made, I apologize...

What happens if Florida/Oklahoma/Louisville and Michigan all win their bowl games, and we have SIX 1-loss teams? Obviously, Florida is the de facto champion for winning the NC game, but there would be one hell of an argument...

I'm just glad we didn't get the freaking boring rematch. All you big10 guys are probably right, OSU will beat UF, but if it was michigan, wouldn't you all be predicting OSU to win? I mean, wasn't OSU the demonstratively better team. I know, I know, it was only the 3 pt homefield edge in the final score, but it really wasn't that close. If OSU spends time working on their center shotgun snap during bowl practice, as we can assume they will, wouldn't you have to predict OSU by 10.

At least this way, we can wonder about matchups, without just reanalyzing the Big Game.

What happens if Florida/Oklahoma/Louisville and Michigan all win their bowl games, and we have SIX 1-loss teams? Obviously, Florida is the de facto champion for winning the NC game, but there would be one hell of an argument...

Since Florida beat the team that beat Michigan, you have to put Florida > Michigan.

Since Boise State would have no claim whatsoever with one loss, they go last. Florida > Michigan > Boise State.

Ohio State lost to Florida, so it'd be tough to put them over Florida, but you can't drop them below Michigan either. Florida > Ohio State > Michigan > Wisconsin > Boise State.

Louisville is the wild card. Their hurt, though, by the fact that they'd have beaten the lowest ranked team in their bowl. I doubt they'd go above even Wisconsin. Florida > Ohio State > Michigan > Wisconsin > Louisville > Boise State.

While someone could attempt to argue for a different result, the fact that Florida > Ohio State > Michigan > Wisconsin can be determined simply from head-to-head means that there wouldn't be much of a debate.

All you big10 guys are probably right, OSU will beat UF, but if it was michigan, wouldn't you all be predicting OSU to win?

Yes, except for the Michigan fans. Your points about the game are valid, but they'll ignore that just to focus on "3 point loss as a visitor" as a claim to having a chance. Any other Big Ten fan knows that Carr will be even more outmatched once Tressel has a month to prepare for him.

Yep. Although to be honest, I always thought it was pretty lame. Except for Hockey, BC doesn't care that BU exists. It's like Venezuela trying to annoy the US. Maybe it makes Chavez feel all big to act like that, but at some point you have to realize they just don't care.

The one negative about living down Tobacco Road way is that I can't wear my Boston University hockey jersey any more. Since all it says is "Boston", I didn't want anyone to think I was a Boston College fan. The infamy!

Anyone who is saying the OSU is going to blow out florida has not watch Florida play this season. Do not be surprised when this is a close down to the wire game. OSU is a good team but they are not head and shoulders above everyone else. If the line on this game is higher then 7 points take the Points and Florida and watch the cash roll in.

Oh and for all you Notre Dame fans thank the BCS for having a stupid rule that no conference can have more then 3 teams in the BCS otherwise there is no way you would be in the Sugar Bowl. Even though they did you no favor by making you play a LSU basically at home.

Florida did nothing in those games to make me think they are the second best team in the country or that they'll be able to stay within 3 touchdowns of OSU.

I would think UF fans would take a step back and realize that this season has been a series of fortunate events. Sometimes that continues (like OSU a few years back), but most often, the magical run ends.

If Michiganders can claim a 3 point loss makes them equivalent, how does losing in triple overtime in Morgantown and getting ranked 5 points down strike you?

Keep in mind that I support Rutgers, but remember, WVU was playing with their backup QB (Brown, instead of White. Is their third string named Blonde?). If it had been Slaton and White that Rutgers took to 3-OT, I'd be more willing to support your argument.

Worldwide Reader said... no other sport can generate this much controversy and garner the ability to have debates that last forever.

Somebody please explain this "logic" to me. You know a controversial way to determine the best team in the country? Have all the AP guys vote on the hottest cheerleaders. Then you can have all the controversy & debate in the world.

Who fucking cares about controversy and debates? That somehow makes the BC$ okay? The point is to determine the best team, and the ONLY way to do that is to decide it on the field.

College football is a complete joke until they institute a playoff. ____

that is exactly my point! everyone seems to think that this thing needs fixing so we can get our gratification of a playoff system. I'm saying it sucks at picking a national champ, but does so much more good.

Look at college football as a whole, not just the national champ game, this system, while flawed in determining an unargueable national championship game (or the runner up games for that matter) have a tremendous impact on alot of schools, and this impact will be lost in a playoff system.

The one thing everyone has to remember, is that sports is really just entertainment, and you HAVE to admit, that this whole BCS is quite entertaining...hell, reality shows can't do any better than this!

so, you are right...if the goal is to pick an unarguable national champion, then the system is flawed tremendously...but, with the goal of exposing the country to as many schools as possible and televising as many games as possible to maximize the revenue of NCAA football to pass along to these schools, I think you would lose that in a playoff system.

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DanShanoff.com is a sports-blog spin-off of my long-time ESPN.com column, "The Daily Quickie." Anchored by an early-morning post of must-know topics, the blog is updated frequently throughout the day with new posts and user comments.